Dole charged Democrats, led by Sen. Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts, were playing special interest politics by trying to force a vote on a measure to raise the federal minimum wage from $4.25 an hour to $5.15 an hour.

Dole found himself on the defensive as Democrats used legislation to make additions to the nation's parks system as a vehicle for a vote on their proposal. After hours of back-door consultations, the majority leader engineered a 97-0 vote in which Republicans joined Democrats in keeping the issue alive without addressing it.

Dole conceded that sooner or later, Democrats will get their vote. But ''not today and not tomorrow and hopefully not this week,'' he said.